When Russia won the right to host the 2018 World Cup in Zurich last December, the reaction in England, one of its defeated rivals, ranged from disbelief to anger. Yet in reaching its decision, FIFA, world football’s governing body, was simply following a well-established pattern. From the Olympics to motor-racing, sport’s most powerful decision-makers are queueing up to entrust their showpiece events to the BRICs.
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